


Compass to the Ship

by ItIsWhatItIs9194, Teddy1008



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Aftercare, Asshole management, BDSM, BDSM AU, Cockwarming, Communication, Cuddling & Snuggling, Degradation, Discipline, Dom Liam, Dom Louis, Dom Niall, Dom Zayn, Dom/sub, Humiliation, Kneeling, Louis Tomlinson Calls Harry Styles Pet Names, M/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Punishment, Riding Crop, Sad Harry, Scolding, Spanking, Sub Harry, Subdrop, Teasing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-09
Updated: 2020-12-30
Packaged: 2021-03-09 01:48:56
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 14,723
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27462970
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ItIsWhatItIs9194/pseuds/ItIsWhatItIs9194, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Teddy1008/pseuds/Teddy1008
Summary: “It’s clear he isn’t quite getting what he needs. Despite your best efforts, Louis, drops can be debilitating for subs, and there sometimes isn’t much that can be done to prevent them. Since he’s already started dropping, our main focus needs to be to try to bring him back up,” he began. “You’ll need to provide him with more attention than normal, which will be difficult given I know how much you spoil him already,” he laughed. “But honestly, I highly recommend that you—all of you—take a break. It won’t be long before you and the other lads, even as Doms, drop or fall sick as well from the hectic schedule and lack of rest.”Or, One Direction goes on a hiatus because Harry is in a vulnerable place as a submissive.
Relationships: Harry Styles/Louis Tomlinson
Comments: 29
Kudos: 188





	1. Chapter One

**Author's Note:**

> Hi everyone!
> 
> Here's part one to this new little fic! 
> 
> We hope you enjoy! <3

Harry’s face was smushed against the arm of the couch, his arms wrapped tightly around his big pink teddy bear. Louis smiled fondly at his sub, admiring how sweet and peaceful he looked. 

He hated doing it, but he knew he had to wake him up from his slumber. They had an interview in an hour, and both of them still had to eat and get ready. 

“C’mon, love, it's time to get up,” Louis whispered, reaching a hand out and gently shaking the lad’s shoulder. 

The sub whined and tried to move away, still half asleep. Louis laughed, knowing how much Harry hated being awoken from his beloved naps. “I’m sorry, baby, but you’ve got to get up. We have to get ready,” he told him, shaking his shoulder again. He was slightly more stern this time, but still kept his voice soft, not wanting to frighten the lad in his sleep. 

“Nghhh,” Harry whined, lightly pushing Louis away and turning over on his side so he was facing the back of the couch. “‘M tiredddd.”

Harry’s strength paled in comparison to Louis’, so the sub hadn’t really effectively pushed the Dom away. But Louis didn’t stand for his sub being bratty, so Harry’s actions quite surprised him. 

“Hey, none of that,” Louis scolded, grabbing Harry’s teddy bear and setting it aside on a nearby table. “You’ve got to get up, Harry. I won’t ask you again.”

Sighing, Harry gave his Dom a small glare. He sat up and scrubbed a hand over his face, suppressing yet another whine. He wanted to be good for Louis, but he was _so tired_. “I’m up,” he grumbled, looking forlornly at his teddy bear on the table. “What do we have to do?” he asked, sounding anything but enthusiastic.

“What’s gotten you so moody, huh?” Louis asked him, attempting to be a little funny, but he was also actually interested in what was up with Harry. “Anything you want to talk about?”

Harry shrugged, avoiding eye contact with his Dom. “I don’t know. I just feel a bit off lately, I guess. I’m just tired and I’m not in the mood for much.” 

Louis frowned, holding his hand out for Harry to take. “I’m sorry, love. It’s hard, I know. Tour is stressful and we’re tired all the time. I’m surprised it didn’t start wearing on you sooner if I’m being honest.” 

Harry just shrugged. 

“Is there anything I can do to help, princess?” Louis asked, concerned. 

Harry only shook his head wordlessly and grabbed Louis’ hand, letting his Dom lead him over to the table at the other side of the room where the other lads were along with many people from their crew. A huge buffet of food was laid out on the table behind the one where they were going to eat, and some of their team members were already lining up to get some.

“Hey lads,” Louis greeted with a grin, pulling a chair out for Harry. “How’s it going?”

Harry bit his lip from where he was standing next to the chair Louis had pulled out. “Um, Lou?” he asked quietly, looking down shyly at the floor. 

The Dom immediately turned and looked at his sub, a concerned expression on his face. “What do you need, princess?”

“Um, can I have my teddy back please?” he asked quietly, cheeks pink. He knew he didn’t need to be embarrassed; the other lads didn’t judge him. But he couldn’t help it. 

Louis smiled fondly and ruffled Harry’s curls. “Of course, love. I’ll go get him for you. Have a seat and chat with the lads. I’ll be right back.”

“Thank you, Lou.” He smiled, sending a loving look his Dom’s way before taking his designated seat.

“You’re too cute, Haz,” Niall smiled at him from across the table, making Harry blush and mumble a soft “Thank you.”

Louis returned quickly with the bear in his hands and handed it to Harry, who _beamed._ “Thank you!” he chirped again, knowing how much his Dom appreciated his manners. He was proven right when Louis placed a kiss on his cheek as a reward. “‘m not too hungry.” He frowned, staring at the food in the buffet. He never had an appetite nowadays. “Can I skip this meal, please?”

Louis shook his head firmly, even when Harry shot him his best puppy eyes. “You need to keep your energy up, love,” he told him, placing some food on a plate and setting it down in front of Harry. “You even said yourself that you’re feeling tired.”

Harry frowned. “But—”

“Eat.” Louis didn’t leave room for further argument, just reaching to grab himself a plate too.

Harry sighed and eyed the plate in front of him like it was his enemy, but eventually picked up his fork and rather angrily shoved a piece of chicken into his mouth. He knew nothing good would come out of arguing more, and disobeying was _definitely_ not an option.

“We’re going to be heading to an interview after this,” Louis was telling him, clearly making it a point to ignore Harry’s bad temper. “I expect you to behave throughout it, do you understand me?”

Harry nodded. “Yeah,” he mumbled.

Louis’ eyes narrowed at that. “Pardon?” 

Harry swallowed the food and repeated, “Yeah.” He purposely put a puzzled look on his face. “I heard you the first time. Sir.”

Louis sucked the inside of his cheek, jaw flexing. He knew—they both did—that Harry was pushing. Harry felt his stomach clench with anticipation at the look on Louis’ face, but to his slight disappointment, the Dom made no further comment, just murmuring, “I know you did.”

Harry huffed. “Not hungry,” he stated after finishing the last bit of food on his plate. “You’ll make me sick if I have to eat again.” That was a lie. He _could_ eat more, but he didn’t want to. Or maybe it wasn’t a lie. Harry didn’t know anymore; everything felt _off_ and _bad_ and he didn’t like it. 

“Alright.” Louis gave him a glance. “But I expect you to make up for it at dinner. No drinks besides water until you do; I don’t need you filling up on soda.”

Harry heaved a sigh but nodded.

“Didn’t quite catch that.” Louis had put down his fork now and was staring at him disbelievingly, like he couldn't believe his sub was actually acting like this. “Care to repeat yourself, Harry?”

The lack of a pet name was purposeful and clear. Harry let his lips slip into a pout. “Yes, Sir.”

Louis eyed him for another moment before grabbing his wrist and standing up. “We need to talk,” he murmured before beginning to drag him away from the others.

“I answered though!” Harry whined, suddenly wondering if he’d pushed too far. “Louuuu!”

“That’s _Sir_ to you.” Louis’ voice was sharp and unforgiving. “Now _sit.”_ He gently shoved Harry down onto the couch he’d been sleeping on earlier and stood towering over him. There was a moment of sulky silence between the Dom and the sub before Louis broke it. “What’s wrong, love? You need to talk to me. This isn’t acceptable.”

Harry huffed. “I don’t know,” he mumbled. “I just feel off.”

“Can you elaborate on that? What’s specifically bothering you, baby? I need to know so I can help you,” Louis tried, tipping Harry’s chin up with his thumb and index finger. 

Shifting in his seat, Harry nervously gnawed on his bottom lip as he tried to think of a suitable answer. But he honestly didn’t know why he was feeling the way he was feeling, so he didn’t really know what to say.

“I’m not sure, Sir. I just…” he paused, trying to gather his thoughts. “I’m always tired. I’m stressed. I rarely have an appetite. I just don’t really feel like myself.”

Louis frowned. “Baby…” he sighed sadly, hating that his husband was so upset. 

He wanted to be able to help—it was his duty as his Dom, after all—but he wasn’t quite sure what to do. It was one of the worst feelings in the world as a Dom: to not know how to help his sub. 

Biting his lip in thought, Louis tried to word his suggestion carefully. “Would it help if you kneeled by me for a bit? Or maybe in the corner? Not as a punishment, princess, but just to help ground you and calm you down.”

Harry squirmed. “Maybe,” he replied quietly. “I’m not really sure.”

“How about we try, yeah? You can always use your colours, of course. And this wouldn’t be a punishment. I know how much you enjoy kneeling for me,” Louis said softly, running his thumb along Harry’s jawline. “How does that sound?”

“Good, Lou.” Harry nodded with a small smile. “Can I kneel by you instead of in the corner? Wanna be close to you.”

The Dom smiled fondly. “Of course, love. C’mon, let’s go back over to the lads.” 

He held his hand out once again and led the sub back over to where they’d been sitting previously. Except this time, instead of sitting in a chair, Harry dropped to his knees by Louis.

“Sorry about that, lads,” Louis apologized to the other Doms. “We just needed to talk a bit.”

Zayn waved him off. “It’s okay, mate. Don’t worry about it.” He took a bite of his sandwich.

“Yeah, mate, it’s fine. You’ve gotta take care of him,” Liam added with an understanding smile. 

Niall had a concerned look on his face as he gestured to Harry. “Is he okay?” he mouthed to Louis. All the lads cared deeply about Harry and never wanted him to be in a bad place. And Louis appreciated their kindness so much—as did Harry.

Nodding in response to Niall, Louis reached down and ran a comforting hand through Harry’s hair. Harry preened, leaning over and resting his cheek on Louis’ thigh. 

Harry could feel Louis’ gaze on him and melted, loving the attention he was getting. Now that he thought about it, it had been a while since the two of them had had some time together, just the two of them, Dom and sub. His heart ached a bit at the prospect that seemed so far away now. They were extremely busy with interviews and tours all the time.

Louis had clearly felt the change in his posture as his thoughts became upsetting because he gently let his hand massage his scalp, as though he was trying to help the sub relax.

It helped at first, letting Harry fall into a calmer mindset, but his thoughts still buzzed on annoyingly at lightning-speed, coming and going far too fast for him to actually catch up to them. He squeezed his eyes shut, cringing. It almost felt like the start of a migraine, a deep, persistent ache piercing his mind.

“Baby. Baby, you okay?”

Harry realized that he was shifting back and forth, unable to stay still. Louis’ voice seemed too far away and it was too much work to reply. He couldn’t; it was too hard and he’d fail and that would mean he wasn’t being a good sub and he _had_ to be one because—

“I’m taking him to the Doctor. He…”

Louis’ voice faded out and Harry didn’t dare to open his eyes, scared that he would look up to find that Louis had disappeared. Louis wouldn’t leave him, would he? Not now, not ever. He hoped. 

He felt a hand grab his arm and gently but firmly tug him to his feet. He stumbled, still refusing to open his eyes, just letting the hand guide him. It felt numb on his bare skin, barely registering. He felt like a goldfish in a fishbowl, capable of seeing and hearing everything around him but still blocked out, in his own little world where no one else could reach him. 

He was nudged—more urgently this time—into what he later realized was a room that was used for medical purposes when he heard a door shut and felt the crinkling of paper beneath his bum, feeling hypersensitive to his surroundings.

“Baby, Harry, c’mon, you gotta open your eyes, love.”

He felt a small kiss on the inside of his wrist and finally mustered up the energy and courage to obey the concealed order. He stared into blue eyes—Louis’—and took a deep breath. His chest ached like he’d forgotten to breathe. 

“There’s those pretty green eyes,” Louis said, running a hand down Harry’s cheek lovingly. “Do you feel like you’re gonna drop, baby?” he asked, making sure to speak to the sub in a soft voice so as not to startle him.

A small tear fell down Harry’s cheek. “I don’t know,” he said quietly, a desperate edge to his tone. “‘M scared.”

“Aw, baby, don’t cry,” Louis comforted, pressing a kiss atop Harry’s curls. “It’ll all be okay, yeah? Dr. Martin will help. You know how much he cares about you,” he said just as the door opened. 

Dr. Martin walked in, a sad look on his face when he took note of the state Harry was in. “Hi lads,” he greeted, grabbing a stool to sit down on. “What do we have here? An upset laddie?”

“I don’t really know what’s going on with him,” Louis began, giving his husband’s thigh a comforting squeeze. “He says he’s been feeling off, and he’s been acting it as well. Earlier, he didn’t want to eat and he was really tired.”

Nodding, Dr. Martin wrote something down on his clipboard before he looked at Harry. “Have you been feeling different in any other ways, Harry? Maybe feeling extra submissive or vice versa?” he asked.

“A little bit of both, I guess,” Harry replied quietly with a shrug. “It’s confusing. I was a little disobedient earlier because I didn’t want to eat… but then I also felt extra submissive when I kneeled by Lou’s feet.”

Frowning, Dr. Martin took his stethoscope from around his neck and scooched closer to the couple. “Can you lift up your shirt so I can listen to your heart?”

Since Harry didn’t obey quite fast enough, Louis lifted up his shirt for him, making the sub whine at the cold. “Lou,” he whimpered, trying to curl into his Dom’s side.

“Shhh, love, it’s okay. Be a good boy for Dr. Martin and he can help you,” Louis comforted, kissing his cheek.

After listening to Harry’s heart, Dr. Martin sighed. “His heart’s beating really fast. Let me take his blood pressure.” He grabbed a blood pressure cuff from the shelf near him. “Can you hold out your arm, Harry?”

Harry whined, clearly too out of it to listen, so Louis took ahold of the sub’s right arm and held it out for the doctor. Dr. Martin wrapped the cuff around his arm and squeezed the pump a few times, listening with his stethoscope at the same time. 

Once he was done with that, Dr. Martin put his stethoscope back around his neck and took the cuff off. “His blood pressure is high as well,” he sighed. “Based on his heart rate, blood pressure, and what you two have told me, it’s obvious he’s dropping,” he told them gravely.

Louis’ eyes widened. “How can I help him? I was trying to give him what he needs… and it obviously hasn’t worked.” 

“Don’t beat yourself up over it, Louis, it happens,” Dr. Martin comforted the Dom. “And with your busy schedule, he was bound to drop at some point. Lifestyles like yours are intense for anyone—especially submissives. They need extra care and attention to keep them grounded.”

By now, Harry’s eyes had drooped closed again, and he was leaning his forehead against Louis’ shoulder. The Dom had an arm around him, holding him close.

“It’s clear he isn’t quite getting what he needs. Despite your best efforts, Louis, drops can be debilitating for subs, and there sometimes isn’t much that can be done to prevent them. Since he’s already started dropping, our main focus needs to be to try to bring him back up,” he began. “You’ll need to provide him with more attention than normal, which will be difficult given I know how much you spoil him already,” he laughed. “But honestly, I highly recommend that you— _all_ of you—take a break. It won’t be long before you and the other lads, even as Doms, drop or fall sick as well from the hectic schedule and lack of rest.”

__________

Harry was quiet as the boys got ready, just focusing on putting one foot ahead of him at a time. He cursed under his breath when he stepped on his shoelace, stumbling. A hand steadied him, making sure he didn’t fall. “Thanks,” he puffed, wincing and bracing himself for the sure-to-come scolding. 

But Louis just turned a sympathetic gaze on him and raised an eyebrow, a slight reminder not to curse. Harry could also see worry etching his face underneath it and couldn’t help but wonder if he looked like shit as much as he felt it.

“You okay, baby?”

Harry nodded but couldn’t suppress the pout. “Is this interview gonna be long, Sir?” he asked Louis, already knowing the answer. It was with Nick, and Nick liked to chatter. Most days, Harry enjoyed it and loved to banter with him, but today… today was just not the day for anything remotely similar to that. 

“You know Grimmy, love, I’m sure it will be,” Louis laughed, though he stopped when he took notice of Harry’s pout. “Not excited for this interview, baby?” 

The sub simply shrugged his shoulders and pressed himself closer to Louis, wanting to be able to _feel_ his Dom next to him. 

Louis was generous with his affection today; the doctor’s words were clearly still keeping his mind occupied. “I’m sorry you’re having such a rough day, love. We’ll figure it out together, yeah?” he comforted, planting a gentle kiss on Harry’s temple. “You’ll be okay during the interview. I’ll be right next to you, yeah?”

“Don’t feel like talking,” Harry mumbled, turning so that his face was buried in Louis’ neck. “Just want to be with you.”

Thinking for a moment, Louis ran through some ideas in his head. He wanted to take care of Harry and meet his needs, but it was difficult sometimes when there were certain situations he just couldn’t get him out of—the doctor had said there was no other solution than a long rest, and it didn’t look like they’d be getting that any time soon. Not everything was in his control, and that made it even more challenging to provide Harry with the appropriate care he needed. 

“Aren’t up to socializing, yeah? Maybe you can just relax during this interview. How about we set you up with Siri on your phone and if you need to talk, you can do it that way,” he suggested, tapping Harry’s cheek so the sub would turn and face him. He needed to see his face so he could gauge his feelings about the suggestion.

Harry nodded, though he seemed slightly hesitant. “I’d like that. But won’t people think it’s weird? They’ll wonder why I’m not talking,” he said, always anxious about what other people would think of him.

“We can just say you’re on vocal rest per the doctor’s orders,” Niall chimed in, having heard the whole exchange between Harry and Louis. Harry had honestly forgotten the other lads were there, always finding it easy to get lost in his little world where only he and Louis existed. But he didn’t mind that they’d heard; all of them were quite close with one another and he and Louis were very open about their relationship around them.

Louis nodded his assent. “It won’t be a big deal, baby. This is what you need. If you’re more comfortable not speaking during the interview, then you don’t have to.”

“Okay,” Harry agreed, pulling back from Louis’ neck and looking up at his Dom. “I trust you, Lou. You always know what’s best for me better than I do.” He smiled softly.

The Dom grinned so widely that crinkles under his eyes appeared. “Of course I do, love. You’re my husband and my sub. I love you more than anything in the world.” He leaned down and kissed his nose.

“Love you too, Lou.” Harry smiled, closing his eyes at the feeling of Louis giving him a sweet kiss.

Zayn groaned. “Ugh you lot are so cute it’s disgusting,” he said, tossing out an empty can of pop into the garbage.

Harry couldn’t help but giggle, watching as Louis scowled in faux annoyance and yelled to Zayn. “Oi, you tosser, we’re adorable,” he said before he turned to Harry and smiled at him. “There’s my beautiful baby’s smile. Up you get, we have to start getting ready. I don’t think you want to wear your pyjamas to this interview.” He smirked knowingly.

Standing up, Harry grabbed Louis’ proffered hand, squeezing it in appreciation and allowing him to lead him down the hallway, the other lads following. Once they got to the dressing room, Louis led them over to each of their suitcases and unzipped Harry’s to find clothing for him to wear.

“This shirt will look quite nice with those skinnies of yours, I reckon,” Louis announced, pulling out a blue top with white polka dots, black skinny jeans with rips in them, and a pair of panties. He threw them on the couch next to them, Harry beaming at the choice Louis made. “Let’s get you changed then, love.”

Harry pulled his pyjama top and bottoms off, throwing them messily inside his suitcase before he made to take off his briefs. He didn’t care that the other lads were in the room; he was comfortable in his own skin and they were all used to seeing each other while they changed.

“How about you fold your clothes and place them neatly in the suitcase,” Louis disguised his order as a suggestion. He didn’t want to overwhelm the sub, but he also kept in mind that the rules he had set out for Harry were important and Harry needed that guidance.

The sub sighed. “Sorry, Sir,” he apologized and fixed his mistake, folding the pyjamas and placing them in the suitcase neatly. Normally he was quite neat and cared about his things, but he was finding it increasingly difficult to find it in himself to care about little things like being organized.

“You’re alright, lovely,” Louis murmured in response. “Maybe you should sit this interview out though… I’m worried about you.”

Harry’s eyes widened a bit at that and he shook his head. “I’m okay!” he practically begged. He was definitely feeling under the weather, but he didn’t want to miss what could very well be their last interview for a while. Plus, he hated disappointing the fans. 

Louis eyed him worriedly, but didn’t say anything more. Instead, the Dom occupied himself with changing his own clothes, wanting to look a little more presentable for the interview. 

After Harry was done putting his top on, he sat down on the couch and occupied himself by scrolling through Twitter while he waited for Louis to finish getting ready. He wasn’t really reading the tweets he was scrolling through, just simply passing the time fiddling with his phone. He had a tendency to use his phone as an excuse to make him appear busy or unbothered when really, Louis knew he was thinking about something.

Taking notice of Harry’s stance, Louis finished getting dressed and walked over to the sub. He subtly grabbed the younger lad’s phone and took it out of his hand, turning it off and putting it in his own pocket. 

Harry frowned. “Heyyy,” he whined childishly with an adorable pout. 

The Dom chuckled. Even though he would never admit it, he secretly loved Harry’s pouty side. It relieved him a bit to hear Harry whining too; it told him that he wasn’t too far out of it to not be a bit bratty. “You’ll get it back for the interview,” he assured him. “I know you’re anxious, baby. Let me calm you down. C’mere.” He gestured for Harry to stand up.

With a confused look on his face, Harry slowly stood up and crossed his arms behind his back, awaiting further instruction. 

“There’s my good boy,” Louis praised, taking a hold of the back of Harry’s neck and tipping the sub’s head back. He placed one hand there while his other hand gently held the front of Harry’s throat—not grasping it but ghosting over it, barely there. “You need your Dom to help calm you down, huh?” the Dom asked, taking a stronger grip of the back of Harry’s neck.

Closing his eyes, Harry nodded blissfully. “Mhm,” he sighed, loving the feeling of Louis taking control and exerting his dominance by gripping his neck.

“Such a sweet lad,” Louis cooed, loving the look on Harry’s face. He leaned forward and brushed his lips along the left side of the sub’s collarbone, right where his sub mark was. 

Harry shivered, letting out a whimper. “Lou,” he whispered, sounding incredibly needy.

“Sir, love,” Louis corrected gently. Harry wasn’t in trouble, but it helped to ground him and make him feel extra submissive when he addressed Louis in such a way. So Louis wanted to enforce that title. 

The sub whimpered again, worried he was in trouble. 

“You’re not in trouble, love,” Louis assured him, pressing a kiss to his cheek. “You just need to be reminded of your place to help put you back in the right frame of mind, yeah? So it’s ‘Sir’ right now,” he explained to the lad, always wanting to make sure he communicated appropriately with Harry. “Colour?”

“Yes, Sir. ‘M green,” Harry replied, allowing Louis to tilt his head back a little farther. 

Smirking, Louis leaned forward and kissed Harry’s sub mark once more before he began sucking on the skin there, leaving a little love bite. Harry whined in response, the area tingling due to all the attention it was getting. The action definitely made him feel more submissive and helped calm him down. 

“Gross.” Liam wrinkled his nose at the sight, turning his attention towards his phone.

Niall whacked him ‘round the head. “Stop, Lima. You know they’re cute.”

Zayn snickered and shook his head, turning his attention to his phone. They were all used to dealing with Louis and Harry’s very public displays of affection.

“There.” Louis smiled smugly as he pulled back and admired his work. “Helped remind you that I’m here to take care of you, yeah? I’m in control, and you can trust that I’ll give you what you need.”

Harry nodded, his eyes still closed, looking positively blissed out. “Yes, Sir.”

“There’s my good boy.” Louis smiled proudly, eager for Harry to wear his love bite in public and demonstrate how loved and cared for he is.

When they were all ready to head out to the interview, Harry stuck by Louis’ side, making sure their hands brushed constantly, and sat down next to him. He had his phone in his hands, ready to use it to speak. It felt like a big pressure had been taken off of his shoulders. 

“Hello, lads!” Nick greeted cheerfully, not even blinking when Harry just waved and showed him his phone. He clearly wasn’t going to judge; he was a Dom as well and seemed to understand right away that Harry would be communicating by typing today. 

The interview began and Harry was content to just listen, letting the side of Louis’ kneecap press against his own until Niall announced nonchalantly, “Harry’s on vocal rest; the doctor said he needed to choose between singing and talking so he chose singing.”

Louis pressed closer, like he could tell Harry was a bit nervous at the lie, and just beamed, smiling at his sub. “He’s always such a good boy, thinking of his fans.”

Harry smiled back weakly and pushed away the nerves. 

“Awww, Harry,” Nick cooed in a joking tone, making the sub blush and look down at his phone. He and Nick were mates and got on really well, so the Dom quite enjoyed teasing the younger lad and messing with him. It was all in good fun. 

Quickly typing into the app on his phone, Harry smirked and hit the play button. “Hello Nick Grimshaw, hello Nick Grimshaw, hello Nick Grimshaw,” Siri from the app read aloud three times in a row, making all the other lads crack up and imitate the computerized voice. 

The laughter was contagious, making Harry giggle quietly along with everyone else. It felt good to not have to participate as much and just go with the flow. So far, it seemed like the “no talking” idea was a good one.

Noticing the slight shift in Harry’s mood, Louis reached over and squeezed the sub’s knee as a reminder to let him know he was there for him. Harry looked over at him and blushed, leaning his head down on his Dom’s shoulder.

“Ugh, you two are just too fucking cute,” Nick gushed, shaking his head.

Louis smiled proudly and pressed a kiss to Harry’s cheek, causing the sub to turn a little shy and hide his face in the Dom’s shoulder. 

“So, how are things going? You’ve got your new album coming out, Made in the A.M., yeah? I’ve heard it, and I have to say it’s a right banger,” Nick told them, bubbly as always.

Liam nodded excitedly. “Yeah, it’s been quite fun seeing everyone’s reactions to the songs and hearing what they think of it.”

“We’re constantly trending on Twitter! It’s amazing,” Niall added.

Nick laughed. “Yeah, your fans really do get a hashtag trending for everything, don’t they? The other day when the Doncaster Rovers lost a game, I saw that the hashtag ‘pray for Louis’ was trending, and I was like, ‘Oh my god, what’s wrong,’” he joked.

“The fans really are amazing, yeah, they trend everything,” Louis chuckled, running a hand through Harry’s curls.

“It’s always fun seeing everything they do for us and how supportive they are,” Zayn contributed.

Leaning forward, Nick put on a faux serious expression. “Now, you know that you _have_ to tour forever, because clearly, given how dedicated they are, the fans will start to feel deprived if you don’t,” he told them. “You won’t disappoint us will you?” He raised a questioning eyebrow.

“Oh, yeah, of course,” Niall said adamantly, nodding vigorously. “We won’t ever stop making music and touring for our fans.”

Louis visibly stiffened.

__________

After the interview, it was time for the boys to head back to their hotel. They had a free evening, so they were all planning to just have a restful night in and relax.

Louis and Harry were holding hands as they walked down a long hallway, headed to the car that would take them to their hotel. Harry was looking down at the floor as he walked, allowing his husband to guide him. It was clear he was still out of it and just wanted to be at the hotel.

The Dom looked over at the sub and squeezed his hand, causing Harry to look up at him. He gave the older lad a small smile, though Louis noticed the hazy, far off look in his eyes. 

“How are you, baby?” Louis whispered, rubbing his thumb along Harry’s knuckles. 

Harry shrugged and fiddled with his top with his left hand. “I don’t know,” he sighed. “I’m tired.”

“You can take a nap when we get to the hotel, princess,” Louis assured him, guiding him through a doorway and over to the car. “C’mon, inside. I’ll get in after you.” He directed the sub into the vehicle.

Once in their seats, Harry just sat there and didn’t bother to buckle his seat belt, clearly too out of it to care for himself. Wordlessly, Louis grabbed the sub’s designated seat belt and pulled it across his body before clicking it into place.

Harry let his head fall onto Louis’ shoulder and he closed his eyes, huffing softly in amusement and fondness at the way Louis shifted in his seat to make his position more comfortable for Harry. 

“Sweetheart,” Louis whispered.

“Mm.”

“Can you open your eyes for me, pretty boy?”

Harry let out a small whine of protest but obeyed.

Louis hesitated, then voiced what was clearly on his mind. “I think we need to tell the other lads what the doctor said.” He made sure to keep his voice low and calm, not wanting to alarm Harry with his seriousness. “Are you okay with that? If you’re not, we can think of something else that—”

“Is okay.” Harry tried to sit up, ignoring the way his muscles screamed in protest, and looked at Louis straight in the eyes, aware that their Dom/sub roles wouldn’t be influencing this specific conversation. “I’m okay with that. We tell each other everything, so it’s fine.”

Louis smiled and gently nudged him around so that he was back in his original position, with his head on the Dom’s shoulder. “I love you.”

“I love you too,” Harry murmured. “Now shh and lemme sleep, Lou.”

Louis chuckled. “Brat.”

Harry almost drifted off during the ride, but was woken up gently by Louis when the car came to a halt. “You wanna tell the boys tomorrow, love?” Louis asked, eyeing the sub as they got out and headed back into the hotel. He looked exhausted. “There’s no rush.” There kind of was, but Louis wasn’t going to tell Harry that.

Harry yawned and blinked. When he re-opened his eyes, they seemed clearer. “No, we can tell them now, Sir.” He pressed closer to Louis, holding his hand tight. “I’m okay. I’m hungry too.”

Louis smiled. “Okay. We can get you a snack and you just eat it while I tell them, okay, sweetheart? No need to worry about this at all.” He was going to take care of it, and then take care of Harry. 

Nodding, Harry snuggled closer to Louis, content to just close his eyes and relax until they arrived at the hotel.

About twenty minutes later, Harry was woken up by Louis gently running a hand through his curls and whispering to him. “It’s time to get up, baby. We’re at the hotel.” 

With a whine, Harry opened his eyes and stared blankly at Louis, waiting for him to give him an order. He always needed guidance from his Dom, but especially right now. In his current mental state, he really just wanted to sit back and allow Louis to take control and guide him.

“C’mon, princess, let’s go,” Louis said to him in a hushed tone, reaching over and pressing the button to unclick Harry’s seatbelt. He then grabbed the sub’s hand in his and gently guided him out of the vehicle, pulling the sub close to his side. “Follow Paul.”

The couple held hands as their bodyguard, Paul, led them to the hotel building. Thankfully, there were only a few fans waiting outside, and they were calm and respectful. Three of them were Dommes and two of them were subs, and they seemed to understand that Harry wasn’t really in the mood to chat much.

“Louis, can we have a picture with you and Harry?” one of the submissive girls asked shyly.

The Dom in question looked over at Harry to gauge his reaction and noticed the lad looked a little hesitant. “Is that alright, baby? Or no?”

Fiddling with the bottom of his t-shirt, Harry avoided eye contact with the fans and his Dom. “Don’t want anyone seeing me like this,” he whispered to him. “I can do an autograph.”

Squeezing his sub’s hand in a silent appreciation for his honesty, Louis turned towards the girls. “I’m sorry, loves, Harry really isn’t up for a photo. How about some autographs?”

Thankfully, the girls were incredibly understanding and were elated to receive autographs from their idols. “That’s okay! Thank you, Harry,” one of the Domme girls said kindly and gave him a sweet smile. As a Domme, she could most likely tell he wasn’t in the best state.

Harry nodded and smiled back before he took the Sharpie they handed him and wrote them a little note followed by scribbling his name. All the while, Louis was keeping an eye on him to make sure he felt comfortable and the girls weren’t sneaking any photos.

“Thank you, girls,” Louis said after he signed his own autographs, flashing them a smile. “If you happen to have any photos, please don’t post them. Harry really would like his privacy right now.”

They all nodded vigorously. “Of course! We don’t have anything, but if we did, we wouldn’t post anything,” they assured the couple. 

“We appreciate it. Have a good evening.” Louis smiled at them one more time and waved, pulling Harry along by his side as they made their way inside the hotel. “You did really well back there, love. I’m proud of you,” he praised his sub and kissed him gently on the lips. 

Blushing, Harry kissed back and then directed his gaze towards the floor. “Thank you, Sir.”

“Let’s get you checked in,” Paul called to them, motioning for them to follow him to the front desk. The couple followed, still hand-in-hand, and Harry stood slightly behind Louis with his cheek resting on the Dom’s shoulder once they got to the desk.

Paul handled most the check-in process, save for Louis handing over his and Harry’s IDs for the woman to check. By the time they were all checked in, Harry was nearly asleep again on Louis’ shoulder, the Dom having to tap the sub’s shoulder to get his attention.

“Tired baby,” Louis chuckled fondly, pressing a kiss to the lad’s cheek when he whined at being forced to walk yet again. “Let’s get you into bed for a quick nap and I’ll order you something from room service while you sleep. Any idea of what you’d like?”

Harry shrugged, following Louis and Paul over to the elevator. “I dunno. Pick for me?”

“Of course, baby,” Louis told him, kissing the top of his head. 

Paul smiled at them. “Alright, you two. You’re in room 1409. Here’s your keys,” he handed the key cards to Louis, who put them in his pocket. “The other lads should be here soon; their car was a bit late. I’ll just get them checked in and we’ll reconvene tomorrow for the concert and all that. I hope you feel better, lad,” he addressed Harry. “Cheers.” 

“Cheers, mate,” Louis replied, guiding Harry into the elevator along with him.

Soon enough, Harry was in the big, comfy bed in their hotel room, cozy underneath the blankets, and he let out a content sigh. “Is good,” he murmured, letting his eyes fall shut. Then, he drifted off to sleep.

When he woke up, it was to the sounds of voices—Louis’ included. He blinked drowsily. Was there an issue? Was Louis okay? Where was he? His heart began to beat a little faster. Then, he relaxed when he heard footsteps and the voices grew louder. “Lou?” he called cautiously, wondering if he was interrupting something.

Louis was at his side immediately, gently running a hand through his curls. “You okay, love?” he murmured. “I’m sorry I wasn’t here when you woke up. The lads brought drinks and food for us, but I want you to just stick to water tonight. Can you do that for me?”

Harry pouted but nodded. “Okay, I can do that,” he said softly.

“Hey, mate!” Niall beamed at him. “You’re awake! Lou-bear wouldn’t let us wake you up from your nap so we started eating first.” He suddenly looked guilty. “I hope that’s okay with you.”

Harry shrugged. “Yeah, I don’t care,” he murmured, stretching. “Not that hungry.”

“You’re gonna have a snack,” Louis told him gently. “Some crisps and apple slices, yeah?”

Harry nodded. He would eat even if he wasn’t hungry if it appeased Louis. He obediently sat down next to the other boys and popped a crisp into his mouth. Crunching on it, he listened to them talk, happy to contribute here and there to the small talk.

Then, Louis cleared his throat. “Hey, lads, shut up for a second, yeah?” He glanced at Harry and Harry’s heart jumped a bit. Louis seemed to notice his nerves because he reached out and placed a hand on his knee, rubbing comfortingly. Harry felt himself relax at the touch. “Haz and I have got something to tell you.”

“What’s wrong?” Liam asked, immediately sensing the tense vibe Louis’ words gave off. 

The other lads all looked concerned as well, noticing the anxious look on Harry’s face. 

“You know I took Harry to see Dr. Martin earlier today,” Louis began, keeping his voice calm so he didn’t cause his sub and the other lads even more anxiety. “And… it wasn’t very good. He—”

Niall interrupted before Louis could finish his sentence. “Is Harry okay?! You’re not going to, like, die on us or something are you, Haz?” he asked frantically. 

“Niall,” Louis groaned, face palming. “No, Harry’s not going to die. _Jesus_.” He was exasperated. “Don’t say shit like that.” 

The blond Dom held his hands up in surrender. “I was just worried!”

“Before Niall rudely interrupted you were saying…” Zayn prompted, eager to hear the rest of Louis’ story. 

Louis bit his lip and looked at Harry, only to find the lad once again avoiding his gaze and fiddling with his clothing. It was a bad habit he’d gotten into that Louis couldn’t break him of. He did it whenever he was nervous. 

Attempting to soothe the sub, Louis rubbed his knee once more. “He said that Harry is getting into a really bad place because he’s stressed from our busy schedule. Apparently, even with the care and attention I’ve given him, it’s inevitable that Harry’s going to drop. He’s already been in the beginning stages of it now, as I’m sure you all have noticed. And supposedly, the only way to avoid him—and eventually, us too—from getting into a really bad place, is to cut down on our work.”

The Dom decided there was no reason to sugarcoat what was going on. He felt they all deserved to know; they were a team and they were brothers. And Harry’s health was Louis’ top priority, so he would do anything it took to keep him safe.

Stopping mid-chew, the lads were all staring at Louis and Harry, clearly unsure of how to respond. 

Finally, Liam broke the silence. “Cut down the work?” he echoed. “That’s… that’s good and all, mate, but what exactly do you mean by that? You know if it was us planning our schedule, it wouldn’t be like this at all.” 

“We need a break.”

“A break?” Zayn echoed. “And… and this is approved?” He looked at both Harry and Louis, who avoided his eyes.

“Well, I for one think that if it’s gonna help Hazza, we should go with it.” Niall shot a glance at Harry worriedly. “There’s no need for us to endanger ourselves. The fans will understand.”

Louis nodded grimly. “They will,” he agreed. 

Now the real question was whether management would. 

__________

“It’ll be okay,” Louis soothed Harry, holding his hand tightly. “Remember, we planned out what we were going to say, love, yeah? And I’ll be doing most of the talking. You just need to stand there and look pretty like always. My pretty boy.” He gently kissed the side of Harry’s head.

Harry smiled weakly at his Dom, grateful for the comfort but still unable to help but feel anxious. They were about to tell management of how the boys had decided a break—a hiatus—would be beneficial for them all, not just for Harry.

The Dom opened the door to their management team’s office without knocking, as he really gave zero shits about being polite to them. They were awful people and didn’t treat them with any respect, so Louis gave them none back. 

Walking inside the room with his hand still holding Harry’s tightly, the Dom surveyed the room and made eye contact with Simon, offering the man a tight lipped smile.

“Louis, Harry,” the older man greeted, face blank. “To what do we owe the pleasure?” he asked with a hint of sarcasm. 

The Dom rolled his eyes and turned to Harry. “Here, sit down, love,” he ordered, leading him to a chair in the back of the room. The sub was thankful for the order and obeyed, sitting down in the chair and making himself appear as small as possible. 

“So Harry isn’t going to be speaking to me?” Simon asked mockingly. “Always knew he was a bit frightened of me.”

Louis scowled. “Shut up, Simon. He just thinks you’re a dick. Because you are.” 

“Whatever,” Simon scoffed. “Now why are you two here?” he asked impatiently, tapping his pen on the table in front of him. 

For once, Louis felt slightly nervous in front of Simon and the rest of the team, but he kept himself composed for his and Harry’s sake.

“We need a break,” he announced, putting both his hands on the table. “Harry was in a bad place yesterday. So I took him to see Dr. Martin, and he informed us that we need to cut back on our schedules. If we don’t, Harry is going to go through a drop, and he already is in the early stages of dropping. The other lads and I are in danger of becoming ill if we keep working at this rate as well. It’s too hectic.”

Simon bit the inside of his cheek, staring back at Louis blankly. He didn’t say anything, clearly not happy. 

Harry shifted in his seat, sensing the uncomfortable atmosphere. “Um, Louis just cares about my health, and so—” 

“Did I ask?” Simon sneered, making the sub shrink back. “I don’t think so. Now, here’s what’s going to happen—”

“Don’t interrupt him,” Louis hissed, glaring at the man. “You’ve got no reason to be mad at either of us. I’m just trying to do what’s best for my husband’s health.”

Joe, another member of their management team, chuckled rudely. “Husband,” he mocked. “You do realize that it’s bad enough that Harry had to take you as his Dom and show the world you’re gay, yeah? And now you’re trying to take a break.”

Harry shrank back into his seat, looking down at his lap. Louis went over to comfort him, pressing a kiss to his head. 

“We’re not going to taint your reputation even further by telling the whole world that you need a break from your _job_ ,” a female member of their management team added, shaking her head incredulously. 

Louis narrowed his eyes. “We don’t particularly _want_ a break. We _need_ a break. And if our current schedule is hurting my husband’s health, then I’m going to listen to Dr. Martin—who is employed by your company, mind—and do what is best for my sub.”

“Oh please,” Simon scoffed. “Dr. Martin isn’t telling the truth. There’s no way a simple little drop can’t be fixed with some medicine and extra attention.”

Harry inwardly bursted with anger. How dare Simon act like sub drop wasn’t a big deal when he hadn’t gone through it himself? “You know nothing about s–sub drops,” the sub seethed, ignoring the fact he’d stuttered out of nervousness—and the fact he was dropping. “Don’t act like they’re not a big deal w–when you haven’t experienced one yourself or even helped a s–sub through one because we all know you’re too d–disgusting to have a sub of your own.” 

The sub couldn’t believe he’d gotten all of his angry thoughts out given his current state, but it exhausted him. He felt like that was all he could say and he didn’t want to talk for another _year_ he was so tired.

“Harry.” Louis directed his gaze towards his sub. “Although I agree with you, let’s just try to relax yeah? Don’t want to have you in an even worse state.”

Embarrassed, Harry mumbled, “Sorry.”

Turning back towards the group of dickheads at the table, Louis stared at them with a glare for a few moments, gathering his thoughts. “Dr. Martin _always_ tells the truth and you know that,” he began with a roll of his eyes. “He cares about all of us—unlike you lot—and he wouldn’t lie about something as serious as this. Sub drops aren’t ‘simple’ or ‘little’ occurrences, you asshole. They’re a big deal for both subs and Doms, and I need to take care of Harry and help him through it. If you don’t agree to let us take a break, then I’ll be sure to drag your sorry arses to the curb. And you know I’m not bluffing. So let us take a damn _break_ , Simon,” Louis huffed.

Unimpressed, Simon narrowed his eyes. “Whatever. If you want to taint your reputation, then that’s not my problem. You’re the ones who will pay for it. But let me be clear: this ‘break’ will not damage the reputation of my management company or label.”

“Okay, Simon,” Louis rolled his eyes yet again, reaching his hand out for Harry to take. “It doesn’t matter. It wouldn’t be us hurting your precious management company and label; it’d be _you_ for allowing us to be so overworked that we even got to this point,” he told him before turning to Harry. “C’mon, love, let’s go.”

With an icy expression on his face, Simon watched as the Dom and sub left the room.

__________

The next day, the lads all had a scheduled signing to arrange for a hiatus. As he watched the other boys lean over and sign their names, Harry couldn’t help but feel guilty. The Sub felt like he was betraying their fans, but he didn’t feel like there was another option. He had to do what was best for his health.

They had agreed to begin their much needed hiatus in exactly one month, and the length of it was indefinite. It was scary not really knowing what to expect in the future, but he at least knew he and Louis were going to focus on improving his health.

Louis’ voice snapped him out of his thoughts. “It’s your turn, love,” the Dom told him, handing him a black pen. 

Shakily, Harry stepped forward and moved his pen to the place where he was supposed to sign, hesitating. Sensing the lad’s nervousness, Louis placed a kiss to his cheek. “It’s okay, baby. Remember, this is what’s best for your health, yeah?”

With a nod, Harry quickly scribbled down his signature, getting it over with. And that was that. 

In a month, he and Louis would be at their home in London, and he could finally relax.


	2. Chapter Two

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone! We hope you had a great Christmas if you celebrate! 
> 
> We decided this work was better suited at just two chapters, so please enjoy the final part! <3

“So, lads, you’ve got some sad news to announce, haven’t ya?” 

They were in an interview with James Corden, their favourite TV host and friend. It was time for them to announce their hiatus. 

For the past month, the lads had kept the hiatus a secret, their management team not feeling any need for them to announce the news ahead of time. They all would have preferred to let their fans know in advance, but of course, their management didn’t care what they wanted. So here they were, abruptly announcing they were going on a break for the foreseeable future, sure to devastate their dedicated fans.

Nervously, Harry locked eyes with Louis, the Dom giving his hand a reassuring squeeze.

“Yes, James.” Louis nodded. “Unfortunately, we do.”

Murmurs were heard throughout the crowd, everyone but the lads and their families and close friends, James, Nick, and their management team unaware of what the news was.

James leaned forward in his seat. “Well, go on. Tell us. What is it?” he asked, gesturing for them to spill the news.

All five of the lads looked at one another hesitantly, none of them wanting to be the one to bear the bad news. 

Eventually, Louis sighed and spoke up. “We’re going to be taking a break,” he began slowly. “Our health has been deteriorating due to our unbelievably hectic schedule. So our tour doctor has advised us all to take a break.” 

Of course, Harry’s health was of the most concern, but Dr. Martin had said all of them were in danger of health risks if they continued on this way. So the Dom was telling the truth while avoiding people getting the idea that the hiatus was Harry’s fault.

Shocked reactions came from the crowd, some fans crying already and others holding their hands over their mouths in disbelief. 

“This was a very difficult decision to make,” Liam added. “We didn’t want to have to take a break. But this really is necessary for our health.”

James nodded in understanding. “I’m sure it was. But I’m confident that your fans will understand and will still be here to support you when you’re ready and able to return.” He smiled. 

“Oh, one hundred percent,” Niall agreed. “We have the best fans in the world. They’ll always be here for us.”

“What are you planning to do on your hiatus to help get you all back on track?” James asked. “Zayn?” He gestured towards the Dom.

“I think I’m just going to relax and take some time to myself, really,” he said with a shrug. “I’m not really sure yet.”

James grinned. “Excellent. What about you, Harry?” 

Blushing as all attention was on him, Harry lifted his head off Louis’ shoulder. “Um, I’m definitely going to be spending some time with Lou, of course,” he said, the audience cooing at that. “And, um. I dunno. Just relax, like Zayn said.”

Louis kissed the top of Harry’s head and brushed his curls back, the crowd releasing an ‘awww’ at the action.

“You deserve it, lads,” James told them. “Although we’ll all miss you, we completely understand. We’ll be eagerly awaiting your return.”

Niall smiled in gratitude. “Cheers, mate.”

“And I’ll still be waiting to claim my spot in the band when you come back,” James joked, making the crowd boom with laughter after such a heavy announcement.

It was finally time to head home.

__________

“Home sweet home, huh, love?”

Harry smiled a bit at Louis’ words as they both stood outside their house, staring at it. It seemed like forever ago that they’d had time to themselves at home, just relaxing and being like any other couple. He’d missed it more than he realized. 

“C’mon, Hazza, let’s go in.” Louis held the door open for him sweetly, making Harry giggle when he bowed as he stepped over the threshold. “Why don’t you go and get changed into some comfier clothes while I get us settled in, hm? I packed some in your bag. Then come back downstairs and we’ll have a nice lunch together.”

“Yes, Sir.” Harry could feel himself starting to relax already; it felt  _ good  _ to be able to give in to Louis without needing to worry about eyes watching and judging him. He did as Louis had directed him to and headed upstairs. He opened the door to the room he and Louis shared and wrinkled his nose at the slightly musty smell. Yeah, they were gonna have to freshen up the house a bit. 

He opened the windows and hastily changed into a pair of sweats and a baggy white t-shirt. He took a minute to flop down onto their bed and relaxed into it, letting out a content sigh. He almost wished Louis had come upstairs with him; he was pretty sure he would’ve been able to convince the Dom to cuddle him for a few minutes—no, hours. Eventually, he sat up and forced his feet to take him downstairs, knowing he shouldn’t dawdle when Louis had given him clear instructions. Besides, he  _ was  _ pretty hungry.

Louis was bustling around in the kitchen. He’d taken off the green hoodie he’d been wearing, revealing the black tank top underneath, and had changed into a pair of grey sweats. A frypan sizzled and the Dom was making two cups of coffee for them. Harry licked his lips in delight at that; he hadn’t been expecting to be drinking anything besides water.

“Set the table for us, will you, love?” Louis’ voice made him jump. The Dom turned around and raised an eyebrow at him. “What, you plan on watching my ass the whole time I cook?”

Harry blushed. “Maybe,” he admitted playfully. He slid the eggs and beans onto two plates and carried them over to the table, hastily grabbing the toast when he realized he’d forgotten them. Louis handed him the cup of coffee he was holding and Harry reached out to accept it eagerly. 

At that, Louis pulled back his hand and tutted. His eyes glowed with amusement. “You forgot your manners, lovely.”

Harry huffed and tried to hold back a smile. “Please?” He knew Louis was joking around with him, but he also knew that the Dom was being serious underneath his lighthearted tone. Louis was helping him get settled into a good headspace and it was already working.

Louis smiled, looking as proud as he would’ve if Harry had earned the lottery. “Good boy.” He pecked him on the lips and sat down, snapping his fingers and pointing to a chair, indicating that Harry should sit as well. 

Thankful for the order, Harry sat down in the chair next to Louis, eyeing the delicious food in front of him hungrily. “Funny how you cooked,” he remarked teasingly, a mischievous glint in his eye.

“Oh, shut up you brat,” Louis playfully whacked him ‘round the head. “You love it when I cook.”

Harry giggled, picking up his slice of toast. “Of course I do! It just doesn’t always turn out successful,” he laughed.

“Brat,” Louis muttered, though he chuckled along with his sub. “Why don’t you ask me for permission to eat before you take your first bite?” he suggested with a raised brow, eyeing the toast Harry was bringing to his mouth. “Get you in the right headspace, hmm?”

The sub blushed and put his slice of toast back on his plate. He didn’t always have to ask for permission to take his first bite of food, but he knew Louis was just trying to ground him. “Yes, Sir,” he agreed. “Um, may I eat, Sir?”

“There’s a good boy,” Louis praised. “Go on, baby,” he approved, picking up his own slice of toast and taking a bite himself.

When he was feeling down, Harry preferred for Louis to take charge and give him orders. It helped him get even deeper into his submissive role and enabled him to relax and just let his Dom guide him.

And sure enough, he could feel himself starting to feel better than he had in the longest time ever. The meal was mostly quiet; Harry was content to just watch Louis eat his food as he took small bites of his own. Eventually, when he finished most of the food on his plate, he shifted in his seat and murmured, “‘m full, Sir.”

Louis eyed his plate, clearly debating whether to ask Harry to finish the small bit left over. “You sure you’re not hungry, baby?”

Harry shook his head and patted his stomach; he genuinely  _ was  _ full. He had grown used to not eating a lot while on tour; their busy schedule made it so that most of his free time was spent sleeping. 

“Okay.” Louis nodded and stood up. “You wanna clear the dishes for me, love? Then we can watch some TV together.” 

Harry shrugged. He wasn’t particularly keen on wanting to do the dishes; he found it tiresome and didn’t like the way his fingers started to wrinkle from the water. 

“Let me clarify.” Louis’ tone significantly deepened, making Harry shiver instantly. He knew that tone of voice; he had heard it many times before. “You  _ will  _ do the dishes like a good boy, and once you’re finished, you will come join me in the living room to watch a bit of telly together. In fact, you can kneel by my side while we do so. Does that sound good to you, baby?” 

Harry knew there was only one right answer. “Yes, Sir.”

“Good boy.” Louis kissed him lightly, taking the sting out of his words. He didn't let the kiss deepen when Harry tried to press into it, just smirked and pulled away. 

Harry watched him go, feeling a prickle of disappointment, but just started on the dishes right away. The sooner he finished, the sooner he could be doing something worthwhile—like kneeling for Louis. 

After he washed the dishes, he slowly made his way into the living room where Louis was sitting on the couch. Biting his lip, he allowed himself to stare at the Dom for a bit, eyeing the way his tattooed, muscley arm looked stretched along the back of the couch. 

“Staring again, baby?” Louis said in amusement, making the sub blush once more and shrug shyly. “You’re too cute. C’mere.” He snapped and pointed to his lap, indicating for Harry to straddle him.

Quick to obey, Harry sat himself down on Louis’ lap, facing him. 

“Good boy,” Louis praised in a low voice. “Did you do the dishes like I asked, hmm?”

Harry nodded. “Yes, Lou.”

“My obedient little princess, always doing what I ask of you, yeah?” the Dom continued offering praise, grabbing the sub’s hips and giving them a comforting squeeze.

The sub nodded again and tilted his head to the side. “Kissy?” he grinned, dimples popping out.

Louis laughed at his husband’s adorableness, reaching up with his right hand and grasping his sub’s cheek. Leaning forward, he connected his lips with Harry’s, easily taking charge of the kiss. With his left hand, he gave Harry’s hair a sharp tug, smirking into the kiss when the sub let out a small moan. 

“Lou,” he whimpered, pulling back from the kiss, slightly out of breath. He leaned forward and rested his forehead against the Dom’s chest, panting. 

The Dom gently took ahold of Harry’s hair again and pulled, forcing the lad to lift his head and look at him. “Look at me,” he ordered, watching as Harry’s green eyes connected with his blue ones. “There’s a good lad.” He ghosted his right hand along the front of the sub’s throat, making his breath hitch as, even though it was barely there, the action allowed Louis to exert an immense amount of dominance.

Regarding his sub for a few moments, Louis took note of the dazed look in his eyes and his rough breathing pattern. He knew Harry was clearly still down and he needed to take extra care of him. That was the main reason they were at home, after all. 

“Let’s get you on your knees,” the Dom disguised his order as a suggestion, manoeuvring Harry so the lad was no longer straddling him but instead sitting next to him on the couch. Grabbing the pillow he always had Harry kneel on (it was the sub’s favourite since it was so fluffy), Louis placed it on the floor by his feet. “On your knees for me, baby, there we are.” He grabbed Harry’s hand and guided him to his knees.

The sub assumed the perfect position, his legs spread shoulder width apart, hands palm up on his thighs, and head down.

“Such a pretty lad, kneeling so perfectly,” Louis praised, carding his fingers through Harry’s hair. “How are you feeling, love?”

Harry shrugged and squirmed, adjusting his position on his knees. He knew he was supposed to stay still while he was kneeling, and typically that wasn’t a problem for him, but in his hazy headspace, he was struggling to stay still.

“Words please, love,” Louis gently chastised, tugging on the sub’s curls lightly.

Letting out a small whine, Harry closed his eyes at the feeling of Louis pulling his hair. “Can’t stay still,” he told him. “Can’t focus.”

Leaning back, Louis took a moment to think. It was obvious Harry was having trouble getting into his submissive headspace, feeling too out of it and dazed. 

“Thank you for telling me, baby.” The Dom leaned forward and kissed his cheek. “Would it make it easier if I gave you something to focus on while you kneel?”

The sub nodded. “Yes, Sir.”

With that, Louis reached out and hooked his hand under Harry’s collar, pulling him a little closer to him. He’d given Harry his collar after they’d been Dom and sub for a year, and the lad only took it off to shower and sleep. It was incredibly special to him as it represented their love and commitment to each other. Louis had taken great care in picking it out for him, wanting it to serve its purpose as a collar but also be stylish. It was blue with a cute little green bow on the front of the D-ring, representing their eye colours.

“Such a good lad,” Louis praised, working to undo the tie on his sweats, his left thumb soothingly rubbing Harry’s cheek as he did so. “You gonna be my good little boy and warm my cock? Hmm?”

Harry nodded slowly, eyes clouded over. “Yes, Lou.”

The Dom brought his cock towards the sub’s lips. “Colour?” he asked him. “Open,” he ordered when the sub told him he was ‘green,’ watching as the sub swallowed thickly before opening his mouth and allowing Louis to feed his cock inside. “Good lad.”

Content, the sub closed his eyes and warmed his Dom’s cock, being sure to not suck. As Louis turned on the telly and found a show to watch, Harry took a deep breath in through his nose and tried to relax. 

After a while, he found that the action did, in fact, help him calm down and stay still. Focusing on pleasing Louis and nothing else really did get him in his submissive mindset. It was nice to just please his Dom and fulfill his role as a submissive. Kneeling at Louis’ feet, his mind almost went blank, falling deep into his submissive headspace.

All of a sudden, Louis’ voice pulled him out of his daze.

“You’ve been such a good boy, love,” he said, grabbing a handful of his curls. “It’s been half an hour, baby. That’s been long enough.” He gently tugged him off his cock and tucked himself back into his sweats, taking note of the blissed out look in the sub’s eyes.

Harry hadn’t even realized how much time had passed, having been so invested in kneeling and warming Louis’ cock. But now that he was given a break, he did notice his jaw felt a bit sore. 

“C’mere, baby.” Louis grabbed under Harry’s armpits and pulled him up onto the couch so he was lying down with his head in his lap. Despite their height difference, Louis, due to his Dominant status, was much stronger than Harry and could easily lift him and move him around. “How are you, princess? Tell me what’s going through your mind.” He kissed the top of his head.

The sub grabbed Louis’ hand, the Dom smiling and squeezing it lovingly. “I still feel dazed and not like myself,” he told him. “But I’m also feeling more submissive. It’s like… ugh, I don’t know.”

“That’s okay,” Louis assured him. “You don’t have to understand how you’re feeling. I just want to know so I can help you. I’m glad you’re feeling more submissive, that’s good, baby. I think focusing on getting you deeper in that mindset and keeping you there would really help to get you out of this drop.”

Harry nodded in agreement.

“What do you say to cleaning the house properly now?” Louis suggested, though his tone made it clear that it wasn’t just a suggestion. The Dom clearly noticed the way Harry’s shoulders slumped a bit and chuckled. “C’mon, baby, get at it. It’ll help you feel better.”

Harry dubiously raised an eyebrow at that. “Cleaning will make me feel better?”

“Of course,” Louis deadpanned. “It’s exercise. Don’t make me tell you again.” He laughed fondly at Harry’s pout.

“Fine,” Harry mumbled, mood suddenly dampening. He got to his feet and made to stomp off, but he didn’t get far. Louis stopped him with a hand around his wrist.

“What was that?”

“I said fineeee.” Harry was unable to keep the whine out of his voice. “You just told me to clean, and now you’re holding me back,” he pointed out. Even he wasn’t sure where this was coming from. It just felt like instinct right now, like something he had to do without taking the time to properly delve into thought about it. Like he needed it.

Louis stared at him analytically. Harry could almost hear the gears turning in his head. It felt like a year had passed before Louis spoke, and when he did, his voice was low and full of warning. “I would watch your tongue if I were you, love.”

Harry squirmed at Louis’ tone, knowing that one all too well. Not wanting to make the Dom even more cross, he looked him in the eyes as he was expected to when being scolded and said quietly, “Yes, Sir.” 

The Dom regarded him sternly for a moment before releasing the hold he had on his wrist. “Right then, go on,” he encouraged with a pointed look.

Scurrying off, Harry ventured back into the kitchen and took in the state of the room. He had just done the dishes, so he was relieved he didn’t have to worry about that. But the counters could definitely use some cleansing from the tea spills they’d left there. 

With a small sigh, the sub opened the cabinet where they kept their cleaning supplies and pulled out some cleanser and a cloth. Typically, he enjoyed cleaning, and he did find it got him into a rather relaxed, more subdued headspace. That was why he and Louis didn’t hire anyone to do the job for them. (Plus they knew they were perfectly capable of doing it themselves.) However, at the moment, he was not particularly keen on cleaning. 

As he sprayed the cleanser on the counter, he spared a glance back into the living room, where Louis was watching telly. Letting out a sigh, he scrubbed the counter, just wanting to feel like himself again so he and his Dom could spend some proper quality time together. Going through drops was  _ exhausting _ . The whole ordeal really took a toll on his mind and body. And there was just no easy way to get through it besides having Louis guide him as best he could.

“Ugh, fuck,” he groaned in frustration, bending down to pick up the cloth he dropped. 

Having heard Harry’s curse, Louis turned around and gave the sub a look. “Mind your language, love,” he reminded him sternly.

“Sorry,” Harry grumbled, going back to scrubbing the counters.

Contrary to what Louis thought would happen, cleaning was doing nothing for Harry’s frame of mind. Rather than calming him down and grounding him as the activity usually did, he was just feeling even more frustrated. The Dom took note of Harry’s exasperation and refocused his attention from the telly to his sub, keeping a subtle eye on him while he cleaned.

Sure enough, just a few short minutes later, Harry was cursing again. “Fucking shit,” he groaned, scrubbing a hand over his face.

“Haz,” Louis called in a warning tone.

The sub scrubbed furiously at the counter. “The tea won’t fucking come off!” he whined, oblivious to the fact that his Dom had now stood up and was making his way into the kitchen. Before Harry could even register what was happening, he felt a hand grab his wrist and pull him back. Louis had taken a hold of him and was wrapping his left arm around Harry’s chest so he couldn’t move. 

“Bend over,” the Dom ordered, and Harry let out a whimper as he obeyed.

In quick succession, Louis landed three spanks on Harry’s clothed arse. When he was done, he removed his left arm from the sub’s chest and hooked a finger in his collar, manoeuvring him so he was facing him.

“Calm down, baby,” he said softly, pressing a gentle kiss to his lips. “I know a little spanking usually helps you feel better, yeah?”

Harry nodded minutely, and before he knew it, he was sniffling and tears were running down his cheeks.

Louis frowned and made a sad noise. “Love, don’t cry. Talk to me. Clearly cleaning didn’t help calm you down like it usually does, huh?”

“No.” Harry shook his head. “‘M just frustrated. I don’t know why I feel like this. Everything just feels weird. I feel extra submissive, but at the same time, I’m struggling to follow orders. I don’t know. Nothing is helping.”

Reaching up and wiping away Harry’s tears with his thumbs, Louis began to throw out some ideas. “How can I help you, love? Do you wanna have a little cuddle and just try to relax? Do you want to kneel for me again? I just want to get you in the right frame of mind again.”

The sub squirmed, avoiding Louis’ eyes. “I dunno how to… to ask you for what I need,” he said quietly, embarrassed.

Using his thumb and index finger, Louis tipped Harry’s chin up so they were making eye contact. “C’mon, darling, it’s alright. Tell me what you’re thinking,” he encouraged him sincerely.

“I was thinking… ugh, I don’t know…” Harry sighed. “Could you… um… punish me?” he asked quietly, attempting to avoid Louis’ gaze once more but the Dom held a firm grip on his chin. 

“Stop trying to look away, love, I need your eyes on me,” Louis reprimanded him gently but sternly. “Say you understand.” 

Harry shivered at the tone. It was a subtle change, but he could hear and  _ sense  _ the dominance there. He loved it. “I understand, Sir.” 

“Good boy.” Louis trailed a hand down his side, making him twitch as he tried not to inch away from the ticklish feeling. “My good boy needs a punishment, hm? You need to be reminded of your place, is that it, baby? Maybe you need to hurt a little, just a little, so I can help you stop hurting in here.” Louis gently touched the spot where Harry’s heart was, then tapped his forehead. “Say yes.”

“Yes, Sir.” Oh, God,  _ yes.  _ Harry could barely breathe. He needed this. He needed it so badly. 

“I know, baby, I know.” Louis sounded sympathetic, but his eyes were dark and his voice husky. “You don’t have to say a word.” 

Harry lowered his eyes and tucked his hands behind his back, trying to appear as submissive and docile as he could. For Louis. For his Dom. 

“Mm. So good for me. And you’re gonna take this punishment like the good boy you are, aren’t you?  _ Say yes.” _

“Yes, Sir.”

“I know you will.” Louis stroked the back of his fingers across Harry’s cheek affectionately, as though he were soothing a cornered animal. “I love you.”

Harry blushed. “I love you too.” 

“Now, I want you to be my good boy and go to our bedroom. Grab the crop and hold it out on your open palms while you kneel—naked. I’ll be there soon,” Louis commanded, running his hand down Harry’s chest before eventually landing on the lad’s bum, where he gave him a small tap. 

Looking positively blissed out already from Louis’ commanding aura, Harry squeaked out a “yes, Sir” and scurried to do as told. He reached their bedroom (which still needed to be cleaned), and opened their closet, where he found their stash of toys. Digging around a bit, he found the crop, stripped off his clothes, and walked around to the front of their bed, where he kneeled with the crop on his palms. Then, all he had to do was wait. 

His heart was pounding—both from excitement and nerves. He trusted Louis to take care of him, and he knew he would do just that. But he couldn’t help but find the crop a bit intimidating. They didn’t use it much, so when they did, Harry was always shocked by just how painful it could be. 

A few minutes later, Louis opened the door, and it took all of Harry’s willpower to not look up at him. He stayed in his perfect position, watching Louis step around the clothes he’d left on the floor and come over to him. 

Tipping Harry’s chin up with his thumb and index finger, Louis grabbed the crop from the sub with his right hand. Harry couldn’t help but squirm ever so slightly as he met his Dom’s gaze, looking him up and down in his tank top that showed off his  _ It Is What It Is  _ tattoo not so subtly. 

“Such a good boy, following my directions,” Louis praised, his tone light and sweet. He stroked the sub’s cheek with his left hand, making Harry preen, before bringing the riding crop up to the younger lad’s cheek as well. As lightly as ever, he ran the crop along Harry’s cheek and jaw bone, watching as the sub’s eyes closed at the feeling. “You trust me to take care of you and give you what you need, don’t you? Need me to help ground you and calm you down, hmm?”

Nodding minutely, Harry whimpered at the feeling of the crop gliding down his jaw bone, chest, and eventually stopping on his cock. Teasingly, Louis ran the crop along the head of the sub’s dick, watching as it twitched in interest. He let it linger there and lightly tapped the head of his cock, smirking when the sub keened. “What, you scared?”

“N-No, Sir.” Harry met his eyes, then licked his lips. “Maybe a little.”

Louis laughed, then let the crop swing down right above Harry’s left nipple before he could even blink.

Harry hissed and his head fell backwards. “Fuck,” he swore. “T-Thank you, Sir.”

Louis  _ purred.  _ He pushed a hand into Harry’s curls, tightening it into a fist, and murmured, “You’re very welcome. You want more?” Harry tried to nod but Louis just pulled his head back even more. “Hm?”

“Y-Yes,” Harry panted. “Yes, Sir, please.”

“Such a good boy.” Louis leaned down and Harry leaned right in for a kiss, but Louis pulled back just enough so that their lips barely brushed. Harry whined and he silenced it with a flick of his tongue across Harry’s bottom lip. “No begging. You take what I give you and be grateful for it.”

“Yessir.”

“I think I want to mark up this pretty arse a bit.” Louis stood up and twirled the crop in his hands, enjoying the way Harry shivered at the motion. Or maybe it was at his words. Either way, he loved it. “Over the bed, in position.”

“Yessir.” Harry quickly moved, showing just how eager he was, and got onto his hands and knees on the bed. He took a deep breath in and let it out, preparing for the pain he was about to feel on his arse. He knew it would hurt, but he also knew the pain would help him feel  _ cared for.  _ Louis would take care of him. 

Stepping up behind Harry, Louis grabbed the sub’s left side to steady him. Leaning forward, the Dom pressed a kiss to the younger lad’s right arse cheek before running the crop along the area. 

“What’s your colour, sweetheart?” Louis asked, still moving the crop. 

“Green, Sir,” Harry replied, struggling to not jerk forward at the feeling of the crop. 

Louis smirked. “Good boy. Remember you may colour at any moment if you need to.”

“Yes, Sir. I’ll colour yellow if I need to pause and red if I need to stop,” Harry recited, as he knew was expected of him. Clear communication was always important. 

“Mm. Good lad.” Louis gave Harry’s left side a squeeze before tapping the crop on the sub’s hole, making him squeak. The Dom chuckled. “Relax, love. Not going to touch your cute little hole. Count, baby.” 

With that, Louis landed a harsh slap on Harry’s right arse cheek with the crop. 

“Ah!” Harry jerked forward from the force of the hit. “One!” 

Louis didn’t stop, landing the next three hits in quick succession. Then he decided to give his sub a bit of a break. He teasingly ran the crop along Harry’s spine and up to his neck, where he gave his hair a sharp tug. “How’re you feeling, baby? Talk to me.” 

“Good, Lou,” Harry said quietly. “‘S good.”

The Dom smirked, moving the crop to rest under Harry’s chin. “Yeah? You finally calming down? Just letting me take care of you and give you what you need, hmm? Being a good little sub for me?”

“Yes, Sir,” Harry replied, letting out a puff of air as Louis surprised him and landed another hit on his left arse cheek. He hissed when Louis brought the crop down in the same place again, unable to help but arch forwards. 

Louis chuckled. “So responsive,” he murmured, letting the tip of the crop trace down Harry’s spine. “Why are we doing this?”

“Because I asked for it. Sir.” Harry groaned when it came down with a sharp crack again. 

“And why did you ask for it?”

“Because… because I deserve it, Sir.”

“Mm. That’s right, baby. You do.” Louis whisked the crop down three times in succession, making Harry shout. “Look at you. You’re enjoying this. Filthy little thing.” He softly laughed and tapped the head of Harry’s hardening cock, making him whimper. “What would you do if I hit you here, hm?”

Harry’s breath hitched. “I-It would hurt, Sir,” he said softly, trying to resist the temptation to look behind him to watch the instrument in his Dom’s hands. “P-Please—”

“Would you cry?” Louis’ voice was a croon now, gentle and sweet and sadistic. “Would you cry for me, baby?”

“Yes.” Harry nodded jerkily. “Yessir.”

“You’d be beautiful, though. Really. I know it.” Louis pressed a kiss to right above his arse, in the dip of his back. “But that’s not on our to do list today. We’ll save that for another day, perhaps. Now. Tell me what you did to deserve this.” 

“I… I couldn’t follow orders,” Harry replied. “I needed you to help me feel submissive.”

Louis landed another hit on the sub’s cheek. “Mm, that’s right, baby. You need me to order you around, huh? To take charge and show you who’s in control, hmm?” 

Harry nodded frantically, counting out the hits as Louis landed three more. “Yes, Sir!” He let his head fall forward, panting and breathing heavily from the hits he’d taken. 

“You’re such a dirty little bitch, aren’t you? Love when I use the crop on your pretty little arse,” Louis said in a patronizing tone, running the tip of the crop along Harry’s crack and tracing the outline of his hole. “Such a good whore for me.”

“I’m your whore, Sir,” Harry agreed aloud, knowing how much Louis loved to humiliate him by hearing him utter such words. 

“Mm, that you are, baby.” Leaning forward, Louis let his breath fan over the sub’s hole teasingly, before he stepped back and landed one last strike on Harry’s right cheek. 

“Ah! Fifteen!” Harry cried out, slumping forward. His arms trembled, struggling to hold himself up on all fours, and sweat coated his entire body. 

“Five more, sweetheart,” Louis told him, admiring his sub’s red arse. “You’re doing very well. You’re always such a good boy for me.”

Harry shivered. “Thank y—OW!” he yelped when Louis brought the crop down with no warning and had to bite his lip to hold in his own little giggle when Louis chuckled at his reaction—his loudest yet. 

“Oh, I’m sorry,” Louis said, and Harry tensed. Louis spoke gently and softly, and Harry knew he could be rather… deceptive when he did so. “Did that one hurt, baby? Hm? You couldn’t help but cry out, could you?”

“No, Sir.”

“Oh, you poor thing. I’m sorry, sweetheart. Next time I’ll make sure to tell you before—” 

_ Crack!  _

Harry squealed again and jerked forward with a groan. “Fuck!”

Louis laughed again. “Naive little sub.” He pushed a hand into Harry’s curls, giving him a few moments to catch his breath as he fondly scratched Harry’s scalp. “Tell me how many more you have left.”

“Three, sir.”

“Good boy.”

Harry yelped each time the crop whipped down hard on his arse, but took them in stride. He stayed in position even after they were over, quietly listening to Louis move around behind him as he put away the crop. 

He shivered when he felt a warm hand caress his cheek, and then Louis helped him move into a more comfortable position on his stomach. Harry let out an appreciative noise as the Dom gently rubbed some lotion into his arse. “Mmm, thank you, Sirrr.”

“You’re welcome, sweet boy,” Louis replied with a soft smile, making sure to coat all of the sore areas with lotion. He never wanted his boy to be left too terribly sore after a scene. “You did so well, took your punishment like the good boy I know you are.”

Harry blushed, leaning his head to the side and smiling cutely. “Thank you, Sir.”

“Awww, you’re so cute,” Louis laughed, reaching forward and pinching Harry’s cheek playfully. “Love your little dimples.” He tapped one of them, making the sub whine and swat his hand away. 

“Louuuuu,” Harry whined, though he laughed at the same time. 

Louis grinned, putting the lotion away, before he hopped on the bed himself and pulled Harry’s head onto his lap. “You feeling better, baby? Tell me how you’re feeling.” 

“So much better, Lou,” Harry replied, nearly purring at the feeling of Louis running his fingers through his curls. “I’m finally calm. I feel  _ light _ . Like I can finally relax and just… be  _ me _ .”

Tears in his eyes, Louis smiled and kissed his sub on the lips. “You have no idea how happy that makes me. To be able to be here for you, to take care of you, to give you what you need. It’s the greatest honor in my life. I love you.”

“Stop,” Harry jokingly whined, tears coming to his own eyes. “You’re making me cry too. I love you so much.”

Louis pulled Harry in for yet another kiss before he pulled back and stroked the sub’s cheek, both Dom and sub smiling, perfectly content. 

“C’mon, let’s take a selfie for Instagram, let the fans know how we’re doing. That okay with you?” Louis suggested. At Harry’s nod, the Dom angled his phone camera just right so that the picture captured the two of them, shirtless, with Harry’s head nuzzled into Louis’ chest, content smiles on both their faces. 

“The fans are going to go wild over this,” Harry chuckled when he saw the picture. “Particularly over us both being shirtless.” He waggled his eyebrows in a playful suggestive manner. 

Louis laughed. “Yeah, imagine if they could see your beautiful spanked red bum, too,” he teased, making Harry chuckle and pout. 

The Dom posted the photo to Instagram with the caption: “So glad to be able to take care of my baby in the most special of ways. Love him endlessly xxx” and then placed his phone on the nightstand. He’d look at the fans’ reactions in the morning. For now, all he cared about was cuddling his baby while they took a much needed nap, holding each other close. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We hope you enjoyed! 
> 
> As always, we absolutely LOVE receiving your comments, so please do let us know what you thought!
> 
> Have a happy new year! xxx

**Author's Note:**

> We hope you enjoyed this first part! Hopefully it won't be too long before we upload the other parts! 
> 
> Please, please, please do leave a comment telling us your thoughts! We seriously ADORE getting comments, and they motivate us to write so much! We'll love you forever if you comment :)


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